The Beautiful Letter, R: Resurrecting Nightmare
by S-Jackson-D
Summary: Pokémon is owned by Game Freak, Satoshi Tajiri, Crautures Inc., and Nintendo This fan story is greatly inspired by the original works and is no way disrespecting the original title. The fall of Team Rocket five years ago would make you believe that all crime has stopped in the nation of Kanto. Unfortunately, the opposite has occurred and the resurrection of gangs is among Saffron.
1. Prologue: Rusting Passion

_Sizzle_ _Drip_ _Splash_ The constant sounds of water falling from the shower head was beating through Sam's mind. It was enough to help give his brain a small jump for the day. In all consideration, his warm water will soon be missed when he reaches outdoors. The weather in Saffron, a delicacy to visitors as moderate snow and ice cover the graying yellow streets. Sounds of Pidgey and other bird Pokémon chirping outside of Sam's bathroom window are filling the cold and windy air, drowning out the everyday noise of cars, complaining children, and the strong cold breeze that carries into the partly snowed city.

Samson excitedly finishes up in the bathroom and swiftly gets dressed. It was always a chore for him to remember to grab his keys, so today, he left them in his coat interior pocket.

Recollecting the past few months, Samson remembers every measure that he has taken to get this far. Working his ass to a breaking point, doing overtime for months upon months. The stressful, endless days and nights of doing paperwork, and putting up with supervising the department's training for the police Pokémon. To all that it's worth, this week he will finally be able to receive investigation cases. Finally, helping the department in a more physical matter with his Captain, co-workers, and the D.A.  
Today will be the final day for paperwork, and he will be able to work as a detective for the infamous City of Yellow: Saffron.

Rushing to grab his wallet from his bedroom drawer and his shield out of his trench coat's pocket and snaps it in its place. The button hanging above his left breast, holding his registered badge proudly. Exiting his well-sized bedroom, he grabs his phone from his pocket for the time. The screen glared at his face showing 6:45 am, now is the perfect time to leave now and make it for 7:00.

Upon leaving through his living room door, he turns around on instinct to stare at the picture of his family on the mahogany table; a 20-year-old polaroid of him and his parents, before his dad left on a mission. "Great perseverance will help you accomplish any milestone." he murmurs as he leaves his apartment door.

The streets of Saffron are special. It's something that textbooks can't really comprehend without being here to see for an experience. It's a special type of hope that slowly fades every single day. Though chemical imbalance from factory pollution degrades the color of the sidewalk, Samson deep down feels the hope of the city thrives. While taking his route to the SCPD, a little girl no older than 11 years-old stops him with urgency. The innocence of the little girl made him feel concerned seeing that she's out here all alone.

"Excuse me, Mr. Officer." She says looking at Samson with confused and saddened eyes.

"Yes, little lady?" He gives her an assuring smile to help cheer up whatever the problems she had.

"I need to find the Pokémon center. I thought it was by the gym but I instead found the Pokémart." As if on cue, a Meowth walks from behind her left leg on its hind legs, latching onto the little girl's left leg. Its slit-eyes focused on Officer Grant as it still holds onto its trainer. The concern of her safety was relieved from him seeing the Scratch Cat Pokémon.

"I see. Well, it's an embarrassing thing that happens to many people here in Saffron. Shit, it happens to me more times than I feel comfortable with." He points at the direction past Golden key road, which is perpendicular to many buildings like Copycat's house and the opposite side to the South being the Pokémon Center. "Go down Golden Key road and at the end where Old Saffron intersects take a left and you'll see the Pokémon Center to your left."

She bows her head and smiles "Thank you very much." The Meowth behind her mewled its name. "Cloyd says, 'Thank you,' as well." Cloyd walks towards Grant trying to rub its coat against Grant's right leg. However, Samson didn't want to give the little Pokémon any time. After a few seconds, Cloyd concedes, walking back disappointed that he didn't get the attention he craved.

Without another brief moment, the officer hastily stepped away from the cat as it left his side. "I have to go to work now, best wishes and safe travels out there." Deciding quickly that he had to go himself, Grant left the scene at a hearty pace, leaving little time for the girl to respond.

Sweat on his forehead, Samson comes to a stop three blocks from the girl. He sighs in relief, from his hurrying. Among the busy crowd of people on the road, he knew that none would share his concern that a little girl, even at trainer age, would be walking alone. He knew not to judge children harshly. The former champion of Kanto was a year older than her when she became champion. The thought of someone so young could be out on their own seemed unjust to him. He refocuses on the legal matter he should have done when talking to her. Protocol calls for an officer to ask anyone holding a Pokémon within the city limits to check if they have a registered trainer license. He completely forgot and most likely pay for forgetting.

The rest of the walk to the SCPD was tame. After helping the little girl, he began exploring the many options he had while training in the academy. Many officers would enroll in the city's bomb squad or PTAET (Pokemon Tactics and Escort Team). The latter being less than an official police officer role; more like glorified bodyguards. Recently PTAET is used when SWAT is deemed tactically inappropriate.

The bomb squad is self-explanatory, with the only difference is that Pokémon was used to sniff out explosives, and either withstand or nullified damage. Mostly Psychic types would use Safeguard to ensure a field capable of taking the explosive. If the explosive had any sensors detecting any type of life signature once activated, Ghost-types would be used to help deliver the package to a safe zone. Both jobs required heavy amounts of Pokémon contact. Not to mention joining SWAT wouldn't have rolled Samson because of past experiences. Samson was having a good enough time walking and thinking of such subjects. The past three months of deskwork finally will pay off today. He will start his job the way he needed to.

The Precinct was polished, shining with an almost golden hue. Brass textured bricks cover the station's frontal design. The other combining color to the station was the pale and brittle columns that help the building look museum-like. The scene helping the populous identify the building.

Samson enters the building through the inviting brown doors to be welcomed by a very worn guard on duty. The entrance's design resembling that of the Saffron city Bullet train station's ticket booths. The ideal counter with protective glass being the frame of the station booth. The counter itself glossed with a golden sheen, bringing in the theme of Saffron: the color of Saffron.

The officer on duty is Joel, an older man who has been in the force longer than Samson was alive. The older officer's platinum blonde hair barely covered by his navy blue cap. His wrinkled and bagged eyes blinking several times while reading today's newspaper. While the old-man flexes his paper to pop out wrinkles on his page, he becomes re-aware of his surroundings. As Samson's reverberant footsteps catch the older officer's ears, Joel lowers the paper with an alert face. His twitching eyes and stuttering plastered face calms into a smiling expression when he recognizes Samson's face.

"How's it going, Grant?" The officer sits up from his slouched position.

"I'm ready to finish my last day of paperwork. It's about time to finally be useful to the city." He grabs his Shield and printed registration from his coat pocket to present to the officer for insurance. The officer on the other side inspects carefully and not too soon gives a nod.

"You're ready to go Grant." Joel's tone is warm, but even Samson can detect the uneasiness in his words. "Hey, just putting it out there, but we got some new police Pokémon who finished their training." Joel knew about Grant's biased feeling towards Pokémon.

"It's fine and I wouldn't want to get too tied up in that yet. I know the chief won't be too happy with the news today. But it's an option new people here have right?" Sam rhetorically asks.

"Well, you're right. Best of luck kid." The older officer nods and reclines his chair returning to his paper.

The inside of the department wasn't too crowded. Officers pacing around and commuting others. Some conversations revolve around arrests and other investigations, while some are just small talk. The officers at the station are sometimes chatty but that doesn't get in the way of their work. Even their partner Pokémon work as hard as they do. Tasked Pokémon such as Growlithe, Herdier, Gengar, and Kadabra are among some of the many Pokémon to work as officers. All Pokémon and officers that weren't seen in the main office would be in the investigation labs downstairs or in other investigation departments bases throughout the city.

Samson makes his way to the station's keypuncher, ready for work. After the confirmation sound goes off, Samson officially ready to work. Along the way to his desk, he receives greetings from his colleagues and their Pokémon. His response to his fellow colleagues being no more than a fair and nonchalant "Hello," with a plastered smile on his face. He only gave the Pokémon a distant stare and look away. The Pokémon didn't get too offended by this, Samson has done this many times before since he started working here.

He sits down in his rolling chair and spins it to his workstation. A partially cluttered area with papers scattered here and there with no specific decoration. To Samson's relief, his desk was not tampered with. Folders filled with arrest reports were still located at the edge of his cluttered desk. His empty coffee mug is still in place, rather than gone or filled with unwanted content.

From where his desk was, he could see the whole northern side of the main office. Joining this side of the office with Samson is fellow officer Cloivance. One thing that doesn't help the decor of both desks is how untidy Samson's is. Cloivance's space is well colored filled with decorations from the past holiday. The shared space is off-putting at the office, seeing that Samson's desk not only decorated was clustered. To Samson case, keeping on top of paperwork for 3 months straight can leave a person disorganized. With a heavy sigh and no further delay, Samson sits down in his beat-up chair, starting off his final shift of fully dedicated desk duty.

Within the hour, after finishing the last stretch of filing, Samson was finally relieved of his paperwork prison. When he handed off the last few files for the day to his captain, his overall attitude changed for the better. The baggage and tenacity that he felt filing every individual piece of paper can finally be expelled from his mind. For once in Samson's career, he can finally start doing his job the way he hoped.

As excited as he was to work phone duty, his enthusiasm diminishes with each call. For six hours straight he receives unrelated phone calls that would discourage any officer. These calls were throwing annoying pitches such as "I lost a battle, and the winning trainer's Pokémon is going wild! Shouldn't you do something?!" from outraged trainers.

Samson responds to them saying that "Pokémon who are running wild should be reported to PTAET, not the Investigation Bureau."

Or, incoming calls which were not properly addressed towards police business such as "I have a flock of Pidgey who are messing with my clothes outside of my apartment. Isn't your job to come up here and take care of it?"

His response being "Sorry to hear that ma'am but we are not Pokémon control. I can patch you into their line, but this line is for real emergencies."

Every call worse than the last, provoking Samson to grab his hair and ruffle it more and more. He isn't one to lose his cool, but all phone calls to the station's hotline are not emergencies or calls giving leads to current investigations.

The clock strikes 6:20 pm just as the phone rings for the last time for Samson. Disappointingly it was not even police related. The station was awfully silent, with more than 20 officers and their Pokémon still on duty. Some officers still filling paperwork and others responding to petty arrests. The silence is nice, offering Samson a reprieve; enough time to cool down and take a scheduled break.

In the breakroom officers Claire Clancy and John Cloivance, and their two partner Pokémon Haunter and Growlithe are already there. Officer Clancy and Samson got along very well. Unfortunately, the opposite is true for Officer Cloivance. In spite of their differences, both are commendable officers with great Pokémon.

Clancy's Haunter isn't typically a jokester like wild Haunters. Cloivance's Growlithe is like any other Growlithe and trained Pokémon in the force.

Samson enters the breakroom catching both officers laughing. Curiosity peaks Samson, asking "What's the bru-haha for?"

Claire tries to regain composure, resting the former smile on her pale face. Wiping away a lone tear Claire huffs "Oh, it's nothin', Sam, really." Her finger lingers near her in case another tear falls. "Jus' a couple of kids today who thought about being tough in front of me just ended up embarrassing themselves." Calming down completely from the joke she directs in a serious tangent. "Really what's with kids today becoming so cocky and disrespectful and all that."

"I think the problem is the parents, not raising the kids correctly. That's why we wind up with a lot of stupid teenagers in our cells. " John shakes his head in disappointment. His Growlithe barking in response to the depressing fact.

Claire chuckles "heh heh- Ya got that right Cloivance." Her Haunter begins floating towards her partner, interested in the conversation.

"I see... at least your days are exciting." Sam growing quiet as he spoke. Though he didn't mean direct the attention to him, his fellow co-workers cannot help but feel concerned at his gloomy remark.

"I know how rough it can be on the first actual day, Sam. Being a detective in this department doesn't completely fill merits." John preaches, picking up his mug and taking a sip. Growlithe howls in agreement to John's remark.

Claire sighs from Johns uncalled for comment. She holds a hand to stop Haunter from getting in front of her walking towards Sam. She gently places her hand on his shoulder to comfort him "Yeah Sam, don't expect too much for your first day off of paperwork."

Sam exhales accepting her comfort "Yeah, I know, I just would like to not fill paperwork for 4 hours a day and go on rounds in a police cruiser giving tickets." Sam defends himself.

"Really? I found parking duty and traffic patrol more exciting when I was startin out" Claire objects.

Sam chuckles at her rebuttal "I can't see how that's exhilarating at all. Just sitting in a car doing nothing"

Claire smirks at his comment. Taking her hand off of his shoulder, she moves to one of the cabinets in the breakroom and grabs a green box with a leaf label. She shakes the box loudly in a way to grab Sam's attention. "How about I tell ya over a cup of tea?" She offers.

John rolls his eyes. With a sigh "Uhh. Not this story again?" thrusting his forehead into his palm.

_

The rest of Samson's break passed with chatter about Claire's story, the recent holiday, and other matters; police and personal. Today was tiresome, but conversing with fellow officers made Samson's day a little better.

A middle-aged tall and burly man shoves through the door, with a scowl on his face. The sound of the door hits the stopper, interrupting whatever was being said. The prone Growlithe snapped upright to the sudden noise. The intimidating presence belongs to the department's captain, Han Kenshiro, gripping the door frame with one hand and the other pointing at Officer Grant. The captain's very well fitted grey and white lined button-down flexed as he points his right index finger directly at Officer Grant.

"Grant! My office. Now!" he barks not too loudly before disappearing from the breakroom.

Without hesitation, Sam rises up and follows the older but fit to his office. Cloivance audibly coughs as Sam departs. Samson, annoyed, responds to the scoff with a short-tempered glare. Upon Sam's return, he receives concerned and disappointed faces from coworkers and Pokémon. Thankfully, everyone there was an adult, and wouldn't exactly make a fuss over the captain personally wanting to speak with the newbie.

The inside of Kenshiro's office was as tidy and professional as his gray suit. File cabinets of various sizes, vintage holding cases, and bookshelves lined each of the freshly-painted walls. The overall size of the office was more than spacious, seeing how there's enough room to fit two-dozen people. To the left of the Chief's glossy mahogany desk stands a coat rack that held the police chief's dark khaki dress coat. On the other side is an average-sized Arcanine, sitting proudly by his partner's desk.

The Pokémon in question became wary of Sam's entry, shooting him with an almost intimidating glare. Sam falters slightly to the larger Legendary Pokémon, almost tripping over his own feet as he walked inside the room. After closing the door behind him, Sam took one of the lesser chairs closer to the office's entrance. Simultaneously, Captain Kenshiro walks to the other side of his desk, pulling out papers from a nearby personal file drawer. Seeing what his Captain had, Sam's pulse began to race. Unfortunately, he knows all too well what Captain Kenshiro holds.

Kenshiro breaks the chilling silence, "Officer Grant. Your paperwork is filled very nicely. I appreciate that you have been patient with the department to get you checked in for on-field work."

After an awkward pause, Sam meekly responds, "Um, t-thank you, sir-"

"But!" Captain Kenshiro abruptly claims, "There were required areas that you should have filled out."

"What areas do you mean?" Sam tries to play innocent, hoping to levy the punishment.

A soft huff and puff of smoke comes from the Arcanine's soft nose, signaling to his companion that Sam didn't respond honestly.

"You know damn well what I mean Sam! You and I already talked about this once you were admitted to my squad!" Kenshiro was really pushing to prove he was right, sticking a nail in the coffin of Sam's lackluster defense.

"So you're telling me I need to be assigned to a partner," Sam asks with snarkiness

The captain closes his eyes and gives a heavy sigh. After gathering his thoughts, Kenshiro looked back at the rookie opposite of him, laying a hand firmly on the desk. "Eventually, you will have to. Everyone here in the department has at least one partnered Pokémon. It's a tradition that the police of this nation have done for many years Grant, with no exceptions. We humans and Pokémon rely on one another for each others' safety and unity as a culture. I understand that during training, you went the extra mile to be accepted and pass without being registered with a partner Pokémon. But now, you really don't have room for a choice Samuel."

Sam rolls his eyes and broke eye-contact, trying to dodge the ever so demanding glare from his captain. "Sir it's not like I didn't want to. It's just I'm not ready for this kind of feat yet," Sam retorts. "Besides, I already filled out my reason to continue without a partner in my paperwork. Shouldn't that be valid enough for me to be pardoned? I know police officers in Celadon and throughout Kanto who aren't partnered with police Pokémon. So why is my case the problematic one?"

With a shake of Kenshiro's head, he did his best to speak slowly and clearly, so this absurd point will finally be in this rookie's stubborn brain. "You don't seem to get it. This issue has been tip-toed around for too long, and you need to properly be equipped for the job. A nine-millimeter isn't going to have the same versatility or usefulness as a partner Pokemon."

Truly, this is the cruel reality for Sam. It's not like he outright hates Pokémon, he just doesn't trust them. His past experience with Pokémon led to an injury that has scarred him to this day.

Sensing Samson's melancholy, Arcanine showed a vague hint of sympathy in his eyes; something Samson has never seen in the captain's Pokémon. His mind crosses back to what Officer Joel said to him this morning, that a new batch of police trained Pokémon are ready to be issued to new officers at the SCPD. Of course, Sam doesn't want to quit. But, he also didn't want to be tied down by a Pokémon that he didn't want!

"This isn't Celadon City Grant. I'd advise you to remember that." Towering over the subdued Sam, Kenshiro began pacing around the other's chair. "So here are your options; get over your resentment of being partnered with a Pokémon, or give me your badge by tomorrow morning."

Before he could muster any more offending thoughts of his situation, Captain Kenshiro gave him an ultimatum. Sam's hopes and dreams were being threatened over some dumbass Pokemon. Opening his mouth in outrage to rebuttal, the captain's phone filled the office with needlessly overbearing tone. The sudden interruption shut down any hope of Sam responding to this situation, at least for now.

Roughly a minute passes with the captain throwing in, "I see," and, "I'll send in my squad to investigate." After hastily ending the conversation, Kenshiro clicks the phone back in its holster.

"Captain Kenshiro," he says on instinct. The captains face changed from made to surprise at whatever he was listening to on the phone. Sam wonders what the situation is, hoping to finally put the altercation to rest. Instead, Captain Kenshiro haphazardly dons his coat, almost knocking over the upright hanger. His Arcanine pounces for the door eager for action.

"There was a fire Southwest of the Saffron City gym. A Silph Department store caught on fire. After extinguishing the fire, the city's fire department believes that this was no accident. We have an arsonist in our city, Grant."


	2. Chapter 1 Part 1: Resuming Work

**Author's note: I apologize about the prologue having no author's note. This is the first time I've done a fanfiction. The world that I run as a base is the Manga with certain elements from the games. I show the possible realism that the manga shows, and I use the games for geographical reference and partial story. Though other regions are discovered, and it may seem that Kanto Pokémon are only present in this story because the majority populous of Kanto Pokémon would, of course, be from Kanto. In short, Pokémon from generations 1 through 7 will be included and mentioned.**

 **As for chapter 1, this will be posted in parts. Just so you guys don't too much for a sitting. That and I can help clear up second thoughts on the second half.**

 **I hope you enjoy. Please review and if you have any questions I will gladly answer them in the next author's note.**

Chapter One: Resuming Work

Gusts of wind blow out from the orange bathed sky. The rebound of sirens and tire traction consumed the amber-hued roads. The setting sun could not have been more ironic as the color of the burning cloudy sky would lead Samson to his first ever investigation. The yellow brick buildings aligned so perfectly but is merely a blur to Samson as his cruiser drove through the traffic-ridden street.

Swerving and turning away from the slower cars on the road, Samson keeps his focus on arriving at his destination as soon as possible. Only an hour before did the Police station get an emergency call of an arsonist inspired fire did he have to fully mentally prepare for his first official investigation. Though his mind was concerned, his foot, however, had the pedal put to the test in pure determination.

After many minutes of dodging traffic, Samson draws near the crime scenes address to see the usual crowds of people and Pokémon from the sidewalk begin to cluster, blocking almost all foot traffic. Pokémon of all kinds flee from the danger in fear of their own and their trainer's safety. Although, some adventurists instead of running with the fleeing bystanders, turn their heads in curiosity and proceed forward towards the area near the crime scene. Samson's emotions conflicted with one another. He was excited-absolutely thrilled-to start his on-field work for the police. But the situation at hand cannot be taken lightly.

Samson eases his car towards the chipped curb surround by onlookers and remaining emergency workers. The sight was abnormal by the atmosphere, with the grimy sensation of soot tickling his face. The focus of the crowd and most of the emergency workers collect on the scarcely burnt Silph Department store. The once unified silver-grey tiles and glossy bricks now lie scattered, shambled, and charred a deep black. While the storefront is mostly unaffected, its nearby corner has a gaping hole that ravages the entire Eastern side. The only thing residing in that section now is the rising smoke and burning debris.

While the fire was mostly under control, the masses were not. Crowds of people and Pokémon were all crying for justice, safety, information, something to hold on to. The officers on site keeping the crowd at bay and keeping the masses informed that they will figure everything out when it's safe to explore. In the midst of the police line, Machoke are keeping nosey bystanders at bay from the scene, Wartortle and Blastoise extinguishing the remaining parts of the building still ablaze and Chansey and Blissey happily assisting the wounded. For Samson's first experience on the field, this wasn't looking too pretty. Hopefully, in the future, his cases won't be this chaotic As Samson examines the damaged building and the victims he spots the fire departments captain speaking with the Kenshiro. From what the conversation seems to show, it appears that's it is time to start his investigation.

Samson approaches the fire captain still pertaining to any possible startups to the fire. As for what Kenshiro told him he knew that it was an act of arson. Though there were no specifications if it was a Pokémon that may have been the fire starter. Nothing so far suggests that theory, but it is a possibility. Putting his thoughts aside, he is now in front of Saffron's fire department chief.

"The building is still being put out in certain areas. We found some witnesses that say they may know about what could have started it. It was a bunch of he said she said nothing to suggest anythi-" the fire chief is interrupted by Samson's approach.

Noticing the chief and Kenshiro's conversation paused he took the moment to add himself into the conversation "What do we have so far with the building catching on fire?"

"That's what you're here to figure out," Kenshiro says in-a-matter-of-fact tone. Clearing his throat "Chief Gad, this is one of my department's newest officers, detective Grant. Highly renowned man, top of his class and is one of our only officers not partnered with a Pokémon. He will be in charge of investigating the crime scene."

"Well then, it's about damn time we got another officer for our city. Not to mention someone who can help with the riddle crimes." Gad offers his ash-stained gloved hand as a respectful gesture. Without much thought, Samson accepts the hand and shakes firmly. Figuring too late that he was covering his hand in ash.

"It's a pleasure to serve along with you Gad." Samson wipes his hand on the waist part of his trench coat.

"As far as the damage goes, the buildings Northwest structure took the worst of it. We assume the fire started there based on how much damage was done there and where the collateral damage was done. You'll notice this when you get in the building."

"Do you think this could have been done by a person using a Pokémon?"

"No witnesses claim to have seen fire types enter the building," They continue their conversation walking towards the main entrance of the building.

"I'll have a talk around to see if anyone knows anything," Samson notes before he leaves.

Samson routes to the group of ambulances at the outreach of the crime scene. There lay many people with scratch wounds from falling debris and others with nothing more than ash covering their faces. There was only one instance of a person with severe injuries. The man had burn pads on his face, specifically on the right side of his face and forehead. Seeing poor victim Samson approaches the man in hopes of retrieving a useable account and to help him through the pain.

"Sir, I'm detective Grant for the SCPD. I was hoping to ask you some questions about the building."

The man was leaned up against an inclined stretcher. Some Paramedics were making sure he was getting fluids and others making sure he was stable enough to fully speak. The victim was truly a gruesome site. The man's hair was disheveled and unkept. His clothes are holey with scorch marks on certain parts of his shirt. The man's shown eye dilates in fear of being approached so suddenly. He constantly scratches at the front of his hairline, most likely a nervous tick.

"Can you tell me your name, sir?" Samson places his hand on the stretches to try and calm the poor guy down.

"It's… It's Carl Weighner" He constantly scratches at his hairline.

"Okay, Carl. Can you tell me about what you saw in the store that could have started the fire?"

"I-I couldn't smell a thing? Fire is supposed to smell like burning gas… I couldn't smell anything." The man stumbles as he trembles slightly. He looks up briefly at Samson and back at the building.

Taking out a notepad Samson asks, "You couldn't smell the fire, sir?" He etches the notes down on his notepad.

The young man would mutter things like "bright light" or "invisible fire" after each reissue of Samson's question. Taking a deep breath Samson tries again until being interrupted by the victim.

"I just wanted some paper and office supplies for a project. Why did it end up like this?" The man no longer holding on to his emotions, starts bawling in front of the detective.

From what the witness said so far, there was a fire that had no scent. Meaning that it wasn't a gas fire. From what Samson can remember about fire Pokémon anatomy, they have a very distinguishable after smell after using a fire move. It related to their biology to produce bacteria that can combust in the air. Regardless, Samson has a small clue to take note of. The man was in the craft supplies aisle at the time of the fire. Truly he couldn't have been the only person near the aisle. Before Sam could press on for any further questions one of the working paramedics interrupt his investigation.

"I'm sorry sir, but I have to get him checked to a hospital for his other wounds." She states while getting her coworkers to help bring the man fully into the ambulance. Without a further word, the truck drives away from the crime scene. The sirens get quieter as Samson continues his investigation to another victim. Before questioning the next witness, Samson ponders about Carl's statement for a brief moment, until he decides to leave the rest of the statement in his notes and not his mind.

Continuing on with the next witness Samson did not find much of their statement useful. The witness would ramble about "outrageous" things; mostly the store having unreasonably priced items. With a "thank you for your time" Samson moves onto finding more helpful accounts. Unfortunately, the following witness was more concerned about where her sister was than helping the investigation. The witness after her was just as useful...and the one after that...and the one after that. Each new face brings a new story to the officer. Each new story brings only disappointment. Just a handful of men, women, and children gave some words related to the fire, and even then, they were hardly reliable. It was always, " _I couldn't smell anything,"_ or, " _I didn't realize there was a fire until the alarms went off._ " After a dozen more accounts and too much lost time, Samson's notepad is completely full of worthless drivel.

Sighing in frustration, Samson closes his note pad believing that there would be only one reliable source. That source right now was heading to the hospital and may not be available until tomorrow or at the end of the week. With what little he discovered from the victims, he tells himself that this case cannot get any weaker than it is already.

A small tug on Samson's pants leg breaks him out of his mental rapture. When he turns around to see who or what is touching him, he sees a blue stubby arm belonging to a Wartortle. Slightly backing away minor shock, Samson then notices that the Pokémon is bearing the logo of Saffron's Fire Department on a scarf around its neck. Several feet behind the somewhat soot-covered creature is a man in a fire-proof suit, who is quickly approaching the two. "Officer Grant, we finished dowsing the flames." Taking a glance back down at the Wartortle, the blue turtle has its arm over its head in a salute fashion.

"I see, then it's safe to proceed inside?" Samson asks rhetorically.

"It is, as long as you have my partner with you," The fireman said while looking down at his stubby blue friend.

"I'm sure I'm capable of walking inside the crime scene, without help." Samson's jests, stepping away from the Pokémon.

"Sorry officer, but we can't let anyone in the building without protection or a Pokémon. Better safe than sorry."

With a reluctant passing of breath, Samson nods "Okay, fine, but I won't be held responsible for whatever your Wartortle does."

Upon entering the building with the Wartortle a good distance in front of Sam, the detective gets a good eyeshot of the building's entrance. The weight pressured doors now stuck open, due to the fire cutting out the lines, the somewhat scorched floor while entering and the unforgettable stench of cheap, melted plastic best describes storefront. The inside of the building completely dark thanks to the fire. On instinct, Samson reaches into his coats inner pocket and picks out a small flashlight he keeps for emergencies. The building's interior design still stands proudly. However, the fire destroyed most of the atmosphere. No longer a utopian shopping center, and now a desolate memory of its former self.

Already, there were other officers accompanied by their partner Pokémon inside performing their own investigations throughout the aisles in the store. The canine Pokémon were sniffing around trying to find any off-putting scents that could lead to a possible fire starter. The Officer's would occasionally speak aloud to say they found something that they think may have caused the fire. Although, their findings may not be strong enough pieces of evidence and may have been burned on coincidence.

Samson begins to ponder more deeply about arson crimes and the motives behind them. Arson in Saffron is a very uncommon crime. The lasts report of arson happened many years ago, roughly when Samson was still in grade school. An arsonist's ulterior motive is that this is an art, something that all should see. The psychopaths believe that destroying buildings and hurting/killing people is all creativity. With such 'creativity', they don't want their work to be left unfinished. On these thoughts alone, Samson concurs that this is not likely a professional arsonist. The building is still intact, not to mention some parts aren't completely burned. However, the fact remains that the building was still set ablaze. As to who and why Samson still has no definite answer.

The leading Wartortle barks aloud, catching Samson out of his trance. Looking above the Pokémon he sees banners with a sharply drawn number and name. The banner was landmarking the aisle's content. It was at this moment Samson remembered the notes he took from one of the witnesses that mentioned a specific aisle. Rushing into his coat, Samson fumbles through 2 pages of his notes to find exactly what the witness, Carl, stated. _Witness/victim Carl Wieghner, states that supplies and crafts aisle was brightly lit before noticing anything involving the fire. Continuously, he repeated that he couldn't smell or see a fire._

This piques Samson's interest. Maybe Carl's statement leads on to what could have happened. Without wasting much more time thinking, Samson aims his flashlight down each aisle to find any that relate to crafts. After some time, he lands his beam of light on a banner that barely read out "Suppl## & Crafting ####" due to the scorch marks.

"Hey, you. Wartortle" Samson calls the Pokémon. When it heard his voice the Pokémon hops in front of him and salutes as he did before. "I need you down 3 aisles that way" he points to the west side of the store. "See if it's safe to move further in but be careful not to damage the crime scene." With a nod, the Wartortle sets off.

After several seconds the Pokémon was no longer in sight. Samson slowly follows the Wartortle's lead when he stumbled upon something peculiar. He found that there was a Red piece of cloth sticking out from a collapsed disk case stand. Putting his gloves on and lifting it he finds that the lone piece of cloth was actually a decent sized scarf or bandana. It looked disinteresting for the front and edge design of the sash. Though, when he turned it around he was faced with an odd symbol. As evidence for a possible gang inspired arson he folds the scarf and places it in a mini plastic storage bag he carried around for retrieving evidence.

The sounds of the Wartortle echo throughout the building, calling out for Samson. Samson rears his head toward the hopping Pokémon pointing at the aisle it came from. With haste, Samson collects the evidence he discovered and not too close, reunites with the water Pokémon. The aisle wasn't unsafe, but there were significant amounts of the scorched and peeling ceiling that covered the way.

"Shit! This is gonna take some time." Samson mumbles to himself.

The rubble didn't serve much of an obstacle for the officers and their Pokémon as together they easily clear the cluttered aisle. Upon first glance, Samson finds an oddly shaped part of the floor. The scorched piece of ground elegantly placed what appears to be the letter R. The visage wasn't giving Samson any immediate signs. Catching him out of his attention, the Wartortle cries out to get Samson out of his trance. Realizing his stares at the scorched sign on the floor was unprogressive, he directs his attention towards the blackened shelves now filled with melted plastic from marker caps. The scent of cooked crayon flares Samson's nostrils. Throughout caressing the ruined supplies of cardboard and other plastics he runs into something solid and warm.

"What the hell could this be?" Samson ponders as he pulls out a cylinder-like object. The silver cylinder had what seems to be some type of protection mechanism. Something that was in here was only let out by a remote signal. "How could someone not notice this in the yarn section?" He mutters to himself. This most likely was the object that Carl explained in his statement. Without thinking too much into it, Samson confiscates the item in an evidence bag and concludes his investigation for the area.

Feeling confident that what he found was main evidence, Samson finishes his investigation for the firestarter. While exiting outside, he catches a fellow officer was investigating with him. "I need you to deliver this to the gang crimes department, this fire could be a gang-related dispute." Samson hands the officer the baggie with the red bandana. The officer responds with a casual "I'll see to it detective."

After handing off the evidence, Samson takes a moment to ponder over the other piece of new evidence he found. Stepping away from the aisle, the officer runs through several theories about the silver object's purpose. It was just too out of place to not be important to the crime. Glancing in front of him, Samson remembers that he's hardly alone in this investigation. There's Captain Kenshiro and chief Gad. One of them must have some ideas about what play the cylinder has in this investigation. Regarding the situation of arson, he believes Captain Gad would be advisable. Though he was eager to find Captain Gad, he doesn't know where the older fireman is.

Taking a quick glance at the small water type Pokémon, Samson could just ask it where the captain was. Nothing too personal, just a question. Making up his mind Samson put his thoughts in words. "Hey, Wartortle. I need you to split off and find Chief Gad. I have some things to discuss." He says not looking at the Pokémon. The Wartortle nods and sets off in his own direction. Swaying to and from the crowd of officers and firefighters Samson keeps an eye out for the Chief while also staying in eye range of the Wartortle. The Wartortle stops, shout aloud and points its nub hand towards the familiar face of Chief Gad speaking with a fellow fireman. Nodding at the Pokémon he parts ways with the water type and proceeds towards Gad. Before running off and finding his partner, the Wartortle salutes before heading off.

"Is the building as bad as it seemed when we fought the live flames?" Gad asks his subordinate, wiping his forehead of sweat.

"Yes sir, the damage to the building was pretty rough, but the building is still salvageable." The fellow fireman takes his helmet off and looks back at the building for assurance.

"I see, The building's manager will be somewhat pleased to hear this news." Gad smiles, enthralled to hear that the situation's results concluded well.

"I'm off to help the rest of the team get our equipment back in the truck for departure Captain." The fireman salutes his captain, but to the rookie's dismay, he forgot that he was using his helmet held hand. The fireman slightly recoils back after smacking his own forehead, slightly dazed from the impact and his own idiocy. Gad rolls his eyes with a smirk as the embarrassed younger fireman went off. Seeing Captain Gad no longer occupied, Samson approaches the fire chief.

"Captain Gad, nice to hear that the building is salvageable."

The Chief turns to meet the voice, rubbing his hand on his cheek "Yeah, it's a nice reward for saving the damn place."

"Well I have some news of my own Gad," The detective smirks pulling out the brown evidence bag from his trench coat pocket, "I found a little nick-nack."

"Oh really?" The older fireman chuckles, "I didn't know that detectives were also thieves."

"Thieves who bring good evidence? I don't think so" Samson pulls out the silver cylinder from the evidence baggie, taking caution to keep the item preserved.

"Well, what do we have here Junior Detective?" The captain looms over the see-through bag, observing the odd-looking object.

"According to one of my witnesses' statements, they saw a burning bright light in the area I found the evidence. Would you happen to know what this is chief?"

"Hmm..." He takes a good long look at the cylinder. "Based on the description, this thing could be a phosphorus contraption."

"Do tell Chief," Samson asks, curiosity burning in his eyes.

"Phosphorus fires aren't very common. It takes a lot of set-up and luck for these fires to even take off. For instance, they are easy to spot while lit; like looking right at a flare. Though if this cylinder was a phosphorus fire-starter, the light would've been hidden inside it."

"Assuming this is true, that means the phosphorus wouldn't have been spotted. Although, the witness said that he saw a bright light anyway. Wouldn't this mean that the contraption failed?"

"Not necessarily. If it had a catalyst, like Potassium, it would really get the fire going fast. A few seconds later, then boom!" he waves both hands mimicking an explosion, "You have an aisle up in smoke."

"Can we confirm if there was any Potassium used?" The detective scratches the front of his hairline.

"In a way, yes, but it's complicated to retrieve any specific traces of Potassium. We'll know for sure when the Forensics team shows up to sweep the area."

"Why use an unconventional and very risky method?" While Samson thinks aloud, he feels a slight tug against the back of his collar. As a response, he waves his hand behind him saying "Do you mind? I'm busy right now." The offender annoyingly grabs Samson's collar again, this time pulling the detective a step backward.

"Hey what the hell are yo-" Samson freezes realizing who he was speaking to: Kenshiro's Arcanine. She looks down upon the shorter Samson with eyes radiating irritation and impatience. Out of sheer fear, the Detective gasps, desperately trying to pull away from the large dog to no avail. His collar, just on the verge of ripping apart, is suddenly released, sending Samson a few feet back. As the Officer stumbles and struggles to keep his footing, Gad couldn't help but roll his eyes again. "Sweet fucking Mew!" Samson cried, "Don't...don't do that again." The Arcanine simply shakes her head low and huffs, ashamed of this man before her.

With a hand clutching firmly on his chest, Samson finally meets the eyes of his assailant again. Alongside the heavy breathing, he has a difficult time getting words to come out. After a moment of silence, he is able to speak to his Captain's Pokémon properly. "So, what do you need me for?" he asks, trying his best to be dignified. The Pokémon aims her head to the wall of Machoke keeping the public at bay.

A line of cameras and news vans at some point joined the crowd while he was away. Standing behind the Machokes and doing his best to control the crowd is Kenshiro. The man points at any news reporter or camera that comes close to him, bluntly shouting, "No comment," at each one.

Before Sam realizes it, the canine Pokémon huffs and beams her head towards Kenshiro. "So, the Captain wants me? I swear if he wants me to deal with the media, he won't hear the end of it." The last thing Samson needs to do is say the wrong thing.

"Kenshiro needs me. I'll have to send you the reports later Chief Gad." Half-facing the Chief, the detective waves goodbye with this new information in mind.

"Good luck kid." He smirks, matching Samson's wave with his own.

The short walk gave Samson some time for thought. And although the detective doesn't have the slightest clue as to who could have done this, the new evidence is the best lead he has. The odd scorch mark on the floor and the metal cylinder are invaluable right now. The former being more mysterious of the two. How can something be etched so finely on the ground? As the Captain grew closer, the detective had to put his mixed thoughts aside. Right now, whatever Kenshiro has to say to Samson is more important than his faint guesses.

"I will say it again, citizens of Saffron and the press!" Kenshiro almost yells at the top of his lungs. "The police are still investigating as to who could have done this! We will find out! Everything else will be defined as no comment until further notice!" With this Kenshiro sighs in exhaustion. Wiping his face clean of sweat, Kenshiro breaks away from the Machoke line.

His partner, not too distant, joins Kenshiro's side. He approaches the detective, smiling at his precious Pokémon. "Good job Arcanine" Kenshiro he gave the Legendary Pokémon a short pat on the head. When Kenshiro finishes petting his partner, his attention turns back to Samson. "What do we have as far as evidence?"

"Well, so far I found an odd object near the fire's origin." Samson brings up the plastic bag containing the cylinder. "Chief Gad thinks it might be a trinket used to start phosphorus-based fires."

The Older officer grabs his chin impressed at the detective's work, "Forensics are still on their way here, yet you manage to find possible vital evidence by yourself. Good work detective." Though the chief is passive aggressive in tone, Samson catches Kenshiro faintly smiling. "Is there anything else that you might have found?" The Captain folds his arms.

"I discovered a bandana or scarf of sorts. I can't say much of its use, but I believe it has gang relevance based on the weird design." Samson pokes his thumb behind him before continuing, "I sent the evidence Dan's way so that Fiber Forensics can study it ASAP. Once they get the chance, they'll send the scarf over for gang crimes to get a read of its design."

"I'm assuming that thing has some kind of symbol on it."

"My best guess is a bird Pokémon. I can't really tell due to the lighting and the soot." Samson checks his watch. "Captain, when did Forensics say they'd be here?"

"Let me check." Kenshiro slips a receiver from his belt and damn near shouts into the small device. "Dispatch! Where the hell is the Forensics team?! Over!" There is a brief silence followed by loud static as the Captain puts the toy to his ear. Samson barely hears someone speaking over the noise as his boss shakes his head. The older cop's eyebrows are almost pointing at his feet when he finally responds, "Well then tell them to hurry the hell up! I've got boys waiting on them! Over!"

"I'm assuming they'll take a while?" Samson peers at the moving fire trucks as they each leave the scene. However, one truck remains for whatever reason.

"Ten minutes until they at least are walking distance away. There was a traffic incident blocking the fastest route here." The older officer slams the talkie back into its holster.

"What's there to do until they get here?" Both officers fall silent.

After a long awkward pause, Kenshiro finally speaks up, "Well, the other officers and most of the Fire Department already left. Their jobs here are done for now." Kenshiro turns away for a moment, looking back at the store's aftermath. "It's a damn shame that I have to say the same to you Samson."

Samson lets out a huff of hot air, "Captain, I haven't finished covering all possible evidence, not to mention other parts of the store I personally would like to review again."

"Samson, I understand your frustration. You're a good detective, and you don't want anything to stop you. But I shouldn't have to remind you that you still don't have a police-issued partner Pokémon. You knew this was coming; you've known for three months. Tonight's your deadline."

"S-sir by code I was supposed to have by the end of the week to-" The detectives stutter failed to shift the argument in his favor.

"Your deadline was supposed to be two months ago Grant! Two months! You've had more than enough time to think about this. Now, I suggest you stop thinking and start acting."

"I..." Samson stops once he sees the intense and fiery gaze Kenshiro and the Arcanine beside him. Their intimidation halts his words. Processing his Captains demands, Samson has no other option to go to. No emotion and complete submission, Samson nods, "I understand Captain." He reluctantly aims his eyes to the pavement at his feet.

The defeated detective felt outspoken, much like a child when they try to argue about what they want. He mentally saw himself as nothing more than just a defeated kid who's ashamed of dare challenging his guardian. Though Samson couldn't help but feel ashamed, he knows that this was intolerable-inexcusable. His actions of delaying partner assignment sounded silly the more he thinks of it.

Looking up, Samson feels the need to see a prime example of dedicated officers: Kenshiro and his Pokémon. The Captain and his Arcanine throughout the station get along well. It goes beyond just saying that the Arcanine just follows her partner's orders per se. At times when Arcanine wasn't given orders, she would act upon herself to support Kenshiro regardless. She would fetch necessities for her partner and in turn, he rewards her with a scratch behind the ears. They provide companionship for each other. This is what he sees in duo standing before him.

Kenshiro breaks the extended pause, snapping the Detective out of his trance "I'm going to need the evidence you have, detective Grant. Forensics needs to know exactly what this thing is and how it works." Samson diligently removes the brown bag from his coat and hands it off to his Captain. "Let alone if it really has anything to do with the case." Kenshiro with a free hand rubs his head. His fingers caressing the strands of his combed graying hair. "I will see you at the station grant, besides your partner, you still have paperwork to do." Kenshiro nods his head in the direction behind him.

Samson nods understanding his orders and walks past his Captain towards investigation tape line and border hurdles. The detective weaves his way into the sea of citizens, squeezing by people and Pokémon alike. Nearby reporters ask him questions referring to the fire. Meanwhile, bystanders make rude comments about the detective not looking where he was going, or the typical "The police aren't doing their jobs the right way" line.

Finally, the Detective is given breathing room near the end of the crowd and continues to his car without further distraction or discomfort. As he opens the door to the incognito police vehicle, Samson looks back to Kenshiro and his Arcanine back at it with the crowd. The faint shouts of the captain barely audible by the overwhelming noise of the crowd. Without wasting any more time on his thoughts, the Detective enters his car and drives back to the Precinct.


End file.
